Abiding Hope Lutheran congregation takes next step
Renie Bjorklund, a member of the Abiding Hope Lutheran Church, which meets in Castle Pines, and Pastor M. Titus Nirmal Kumar, who is a Pastor at an Abiding Hope Church in India. Bjorklund visited Pastor Titus in India to assist him in his work there. The church has a strong emphasis on serving others.
By Lisa Crockett; photo courtesy of Chris Olsen
Abiding Hope Lutheran Church, which meets at the DCS Montessori School in Castle Pines, has been operating as a second worship site of the Abiding Hope Lutheran Church in Littleton. Through this nurturing, it was declared “a congregation under development,” by the national organization that oversees the church. This is a significant step in the congregation’s journey to become an independent entity.
“With this new designation, we get funding and support from the national church and the Rocky Mountain Synod,” said Castle Rock resident Chris Olsen, who is on the congregation’s transition team. “We will have partnerships and mentoring from other churches around the country.”
The congregation of roughly 70 members has been meeting in Castle Pines for more than a year.
“New churches have a tendency to be internally focused to get things up and running,” said Olsen. “Instead, this young congregation has a heart for reaching out by its external focus around the world and in our community.”
Church service activities have included outreach to India, Haiti and New Orleans. Closer to home, church members routinely volunteer and donate goods to the Douglas/Elbert Task force. Each month, the Sunday School assembles health and school kits for worldwide distribution using contributions from members.
The Abiding Hope Lutheran Church meets Sunday mornings at 10 a.m. at the DCS Montessori School, 311 Castle Pines Parkway. Sunday School is at 9:15 a.m. Although a Lutheran church, most worshippers, including the new pastor, are not originally Lutheran and membership isn’t required. Abiding Hope embraces the belief that God’s love, gifts and call to serve are given to all. To learn more, visit www.abidinghopelutheran.org.
